Serbia told to deal with war criminals if it wants accession talks

By Andrew Beatty

Date: 24/03/05

The European Commission this week pressed Serbia to deliver war crimes suspects to The Hague before the country's EU membership bid can enter an important stage next month.

Officials this week said a decision to open talks with Serbia and Montenegro on a Stabilisation and Association Agreement, a key stepping stone towards membership, would be judged at the end of this month.

Serbia has been given until that time to prove it is co-operating with the International Criminal Tribunal in The Hague (ICTY) before the Commission provides its opinion on 14 April.

After a series of meetings with the Serbian leadership this week, Olli Rehn, the enlargement commissioner, refused to spell out exactly what he would be satisfied with but said his assessment would not be "numerical".

But the Commission appears to have set its sights on the transfer to The Hague of former assistant interior minister Nebojsa Pavkovic and Yugoslav Army Chief Sreten Lukic, both accused of crimes against humanity.

Both men reside in Serbia and their whereabouts are known but the Serbian authorities continue to press them to surrender voluntarily.

But following a meeting with Rehn, Vojislav Kostunica, the Serbian prime minister, hinted more indictees could be on their way to the court.

"I am quite optimistic that in the days to come we will have significant progress that will lead us to full co-operation with the ICTY," he said.

Eight Serb or Bosnian Serb suspects have been handed over to The Hague since January and Kostunica has stated EU integration is the priority of his second year in office.

But two high profile indictees remain at large and are thought to be within Serbia's reach, Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic and General Ratko Mladic.

The two are unlikely to appear in The Hague before negotiations on the Stabilisation and Association Agreement begin.

Citing the EU's recent tough line on Croatia and its attitude towards apprehending suspected war criminal Ante Gotovina, one Rehn aide said: "It is a different country in a different state of negotiations." Serbia hopes to conclude negotiations on the Stabilisation and Association Agreement in the first half of 2006.

The European Commission told Serbia to deliver war crimes suspects to The Hague before talks with Serbia and Montenegro on a Stabilisation and Association Agreement could be opened. The EU gave Serbia until the end of March 2005 to prove it was cooperating with the International Criminal Tribunal in The Hague (ICTY) before the European Commission was to provide its opinion on 14 April 2005.